Improvement in door-locks



H. CLARKE, Od?.BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.

Letters Patent No. 92,796, dated .Tally 20, 1869.

IMPROVEMENT IN DOOR-LOCKS.

The Schedule referred to in the'se Letters Patent and making part of the same.'

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, H. CLARKE, of Baltimore, in the colmty of Baltimore, and State of Maryland, have invented a. new andl improved Lock; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, andexact descn'ption thereof, vwhich will enable those skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specifica-tion, in which-V Figure l is a 'sectional View of my improved lock, the section being taken through the line x :'t-of Figure 2, which latter is a front view of the same.

lfigure 3 is an exterior side view of the lock, with a portion of the case broken away, to exhibit the internal mechanism, which latter is shown in position when the bolt is thrown out.

' Figure 4 is a detail view of a modication in the spring-wards. l

' Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

rlhis invention relates to push-key or .prolile-key locks and consists in the arrangement of the nicchanism herein described.

In the drawings- A is .the lock-case, preferably Aof metal, and

B, the bolt, sliding freely therein.

The rcar or inner end of this boltis slotted or toothed, as shown, to admit the ends of the springwards ab c, &c., when the bolt is shot back, in the act of unlocking the door or cover, or to whatever theI lock is aflixed. i

G is the knob, by which the bolt is pushed out, in the act of locking.

e, is a spring, to return or shoot the bolt-hack when the key is inserted.

ljhe spring-wards `arearrang'ed in-rear of the bolt, in such a manner that-theirends will be presented toward the toothed end of the same; and 'the manner in which the lock operates will now be shown.

The key D is a' thin plate of metal, having a convenient handle, G.

The front edge of the plate is formed with a pro iileof steps or shoulders, n 'n' n, each ofwhich is f1tted to encounter its respectim spring-ward, and to hold itin its proper position for entering the adjacent slot in the end of the bolt, so that the latter may be shot back. l o

The spring-wards are inclined, as shown in iig. 3; that is to say, when the bolt is pushed ont, the ends of the said wards will escape from the slots in the bolt, and, being bent toward the key-hole, will spring toward it in the position shown.

The ward a, being longer than the others, catches under the tooth nearest the key-hole. The other wards, being bent toward the key-hole, are ont of linewiththeir respective slots, and can only be placed ward, and moves it from under the end of the first tooth.

The other wards will then be at their proper places n to enter the slots, and allow the bolt to shoot back in obedience to the force of the spring e.

The spring-wards, all but the last one, c, are slot. r 1 ted, as shown, so thateach shoulder of the keyeplate D may encounter its respective, ward.

The stem of the knob C slides in a slot, I, in the key-hole plate E.

H H are flange-plates, for aiiixing the lock-'case rmly in the woodofthe door or other place to which it is to be att-acl'xed.

In gs. 1 and 3, the spring-wards Vare shownafixedrigidly in the end of .the case, and being benttoward the key-hole, act with their own force to return to that position' when theV bolt ispushed out; 'but at g. 4 a modification is shown, whereinthe wards are straight plates of metal, 'pivoted or hinged in thenend of the lock-case, and each provided with a separate spring7 h, to actuateA them toward the key-hole.

The ends of the teeth 'are notched, as shown at d, to. insure the catching of its respective ward against it, should 1an' attempt be made to pick the lock; and

it will be obvious, that unless the several wards are brought to their proper position, withreference to the slots, when the first ward a is pushed from under the -first tooth, the bolt will shoot back a short distance, which distance is the difference in length of the rst ward with the others, and one, at least, of the teeth -will catch'against its own or the next adjacent ward,

and the bolt be' thus held from shooting back.

When the lock has thus been tampered with, the" owner of the proper key can perceive it upon inserting his key,'for in that case the wardswill not yield readily to the push of the key, as one or more ofthe wards will be caught in the notches ofthe teeth, as

before described, unless the person who has tampered with the lock, has taken the precaution to push the bolt outward, and thus liberate the wards from the notches before leaving it.

I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent.-

The herein-described arrangement, with reference to each other, ofthe flanged case H, slotted key-hole plate E, knob and stem C, bolt B, having the notched and recessed end al, the spring aand" slotted springtumblers c I) c, for the purpose'specied.

- v H. CLARKE.

Witnesses: Jos'. W. CLARKE,

MARY M. CLARKE. 

